Fire Marshal’s Office

Phone: 727-893-1064Fax: 727-893-1060

The mission of the Gulfport Fire Department Fire Marshal’s Office (FMO) is to protect life and property through the development and application of fire prevention engineering, education and enforcement. The Gulfport Fire Marshal’s Office is located at Fire Station 17 at 5314 23rd Avenue South. Gulfport, Florida 33707.

Fire Marshal

The Fire Marshal is responsible for administering fire safety education, fire cause determination, inspection of business and multi-family occupancies. In addition to the FMO staff, all personnel assigned to the Operations Division carry a great deal of responsibility for assisting in the fire prevention mission of the department. Currently the Fire Chief serves as the Fire Marshal for the City:

Fire Chief Marenkovic can be reached at his office number 727-893-1062

Fire Inspector: James Lundh

Inspections & Enforcement

In 1995, the Gulfport FMO began charging fees for inspections of businesses. We will provide online information for businesses regarding this program. The FMO enforces the 2007 Florida Fire Code (FFC) and referenced NFPA Standards along with local amendments incorporated into the Gulfport Municipal Code (MC).

New Construction Inspections and Plans Review

The FMO is responsible for providing fire code plan review and inspection services. These services include pre-construction site plan reviews, construction final inspections, existing commercial building inspections, plan review and testing of fire protection systems, and reviewing storage plans for high-piled combustible and hazardous materials.

Presently One Part-time Fire Inspector is assigned to this task. The offices at the fire department are next door to the City Building Department to allow a seamless plan review process with other city inspection departments and officers.

Existing Buildings and Businesses Inspections

Existing commercial businesses may be accustomed to seeing Gulfport firefighters arrive at their business to do a walk-through or occupancy familiarization. These walk-through inspections should not be confused with fire-safety inspections conducted by the Fire Inspector. There is no fee associated with firefighters performing a walk-through or familiarization tour. Those visits are strictly for planning purposes in the event a fire should occur so that fire department staff becomes familiar with the layout of the facility.

Fire Investigations

Fire Inspectors also serve as the primary origin and cause investigators when fire cause is not readily apparent; there is a high dollar loss, explosion or an injury/death.

The objective of a fire investigation is to determine the origin and cause of the fire. Interviews must be conducted, evidence collected, and comprehensive reports of all findings prepared. To complete these tasks, the fire investigator follows rules governing proper crime scene techniques, interviewing strategies, and technical aspects of fire science.

If during the initial stages of inquiry, evidence of criminal activity is uncovered, the Fire Investigator must shift to his secondary role of identifying and moving against those responsible. In these cases, Investigators work in partnership with the City of Gulfport Police Department, as well as several other agencies like the Florida Fire Marshalls office, and FDLE, as well as Pinellas County Sheriff’s office and other local agencies to investigate. Together they develop the case, which may include filing criminal charges and serving as witnesses for the prosecution.

“In an effort to thwart counterfeit UL labels coming out on products, United Listings has improved and replaced their label identifier. Please take note of this new mark when purchasing appliances and household items for your safety” United Listing Certification Mark Information.

Public Education

The Gulfport Fire Department offers a small variety of community education programs. These programs are designed to prevent injury and property loss through increased education and public safety awareness. Helpful information is on this website. (coming soon). Call the FMO at 727-893-1064 to inquire about some of the educational programs offered.

Fire Safety Videos – Please Watch

Hi-rise fire in California; Building protected with fire alarm system but no sprinkler system; Fire spread up and outward from the apartment of origin. Remember, Fire safety is for everyone: DO not rely on facts that you live within a concrete block cubicle and fire cannot get to your unit. Click on the photo above to watch the story.

Burn Ordinance 2012-2011

Authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) means an organization, office, or individual responsible for enforcing the requirements of a code or ordinance, or for approving equipment, materials, an installation, or a procedure.

Campfire means a small outdoor fire consisting of approved solid fuel and intended for recreation or cooking but not including a fire intended or used for the disposal of waste, construction material, yard debris and rubbish.

Clean wood means natural wood which has not been painted, varnished or coated with similar material; is not pressure treated with preservatives; and does not contain resins or glues as in plywood or composite wood products.

Cooking fire means the noncommercial, residential burning of materials not exceeding three (3) feet (0.9 meters) in diameter and two (2) feet (0.6 meters) in height, other than rubbish in which the fuel burned is contained in an outdoor cooker, a barbecue grill, or a barbeque pit for the purpose of preparing food.

Extinguished means the absence of any visible flames, smoke or emissions.

Fire ring means a cleared area on the ground a minimum of fifteen (15) feet from a structure, no less than five (5) feet in diameter outside of the burn area where a fire is made of untreated wood, charcoal or other fuels as defined herein. For purposes of this article, a fire ring includes a chimenea or other elevated fireplace used for containing a recreational fire.

Garbage means all kitchen and table food waste, animal or vegetative waste that is attendant or which results from the storage, packaging, preparation, cooking or handling of food materials.

Grill means a device used for cooking where a combustion source is elevated off of the ground and food cooked over open flame.

Listed means equipment, materials, or services included in a list published by an organization that is acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction and concerned with evaluation of products or services, that maintains periodic inspection of production of listed equipment or materials or periodic evaluation of services, and whose listing states that either equipment, material, or service meets appropriate designated standards or has been tested and found suitable for a specified purpose.

Land clearing debris means uprooted or cleared vegetation resulting from a land clearing operation, including any untreated wood generated by the land clearing operation (e.g., untreated fence posts).

Opening burning means the burning of any matter in such a manner that the products of combustion resulting from the burning are emitted directly into the outdoor atmosphere without passing through a stack or chimney.

Recreational fire means a fire outside an enclosed structure used for cooking or as a source of heat or light. A recreational fire is one which is located inside a container such as a grill; a portable fireplace or a designated fire ring, and the total fuel area does not exceed three (3) feet (0.992 m) in diameter and two (2) feet (0.6 m) in height.

Yard waste means vegetative matter resulting from landscaping and yard maintenance operations and other such routine property clean-up activities. It includes materials such as leaves, shrub trimmings, grass clippings, palm fronds, and brush. It does not include land clearing debris or tree cutting debris.

(b)

Prohibitions. All recreational fires are limited to using clean burning charcoal, coal, manufactured fire logs or untreated dry wood as fuels. The burning of treated wood, yard waste, paper, garbage or other waste material is prohibited.

(c)

Exclusions. This section does not prohibit the use of grills, camp stoves or similar devices designated for cooking, fueled by LP gas, butane, naphthalene or other liquid fuel and which are not used to burn yard waste or other material.

(d)

Enforcement. Law enforcement and the fire departments having jurisdiction, either by ordinance, special act or agreement, shall have authority to enter upon the premises where such burning is taking place and enforce this ordinance. Further the fire department having jurisdiction shall have the authority to either require the extinguishment of any fire not in compliance with this section or which, in the opinion of the fire personnel present creates a threat to public health or safety or may extinguish the fire themselves. Penalties shall be as provided in section 1-8 of the Pinellas County Code.

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In accordance with federal, state, and local law, the City of Gulfport does not discriminate based on age, race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, marital status, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or physical characteristic.